Forecast: big leap forward for lithium-ion battery recyclers

In today’s world, battery-driven products, big and small, seem hard to do without. Recyclers have seen the volume of used batteries go up notably in recent years. The global lithium-ion battery recycling market was worth around EUR 1.4 billion (US$ 1.5 billion) in 2019.

New market data suggests it will reach an estimated 11.5 billion (US$ 12.2 billion) in 2025 and exceed 16.8 EUR billion (US$ 18 billion) by 2030. This represents a compound annual growth rate of 8.2% from 2025 to 2030.

‘The rising concerns about depleting earth metals and government initiatives to recycle batteries are drivers for the global battery recycling market,’ according to Research & Markets. Based on end-use, the automotive segment accounted for the largest share of the lithium-ion battery recycling market last year. In terms of battery chemistry, the lithium-nickel manganese cobalt (Li-NMC) segment accounted for the largest share.

The North America region is projected to lead the lithium-ion battery recycling market in the next couple of years – both in terms of both, value and volume. Europe was the second-largest lithium-ion battery recycling market in 2019. Meanwhile, Japan led the automotive lithium-ion battery industry in the Asia Pacific region.

Analysts argue that major US electric vehicle manufacturers such as Tesla, General Motors Company, and Ford Motor Company ensures a ‘continuous supply’ of electric vehicles and their end-of-life batteries, thereby ‘propelling’ the North American recycling market. Additionally, the presence of more than 1500 data centers in North America is expected to drive the lithium-ion battery recycling market in the future.